Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Down 3% Following Insider Selling

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC)’s stock price dropped 3% during mid-day trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $339.55 and last traded at $343.67. Approximately 13,818,178 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 59% from the average daily volume of 8,690,267 shares. The stock had previously closed at $354.19.

Specifically, insider Cynthia Tregillis sold 807 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $380.00, for a total value of $306,660.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 108,928 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,392,640. This trade represents a 0.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $800.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Melius Research set a $1,050.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $720.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $584.00.

Key Western Digital News

Here are the key news stories impacting Western Digital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital reported fiscal Q1 2027 adjusted EPS of $4.64 and revenue of $4.38 billion, beating consensus estimates of approximately $4.09–$4.11 and $4.14 billion, respectively. Revenue increased 55.5% year over year, supported by cloud demand, higher-capacity drives and improved pricing. Western Digital earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Management issued substantially stronger-than-expected fiscal Q2 guidance, calling for revenue of $5.0 billion to $5.2 billion and adjusted EPS of $5.60 to $6.00. The outlook indicates that AI infrastructure and hyperscale data-center demand remain strong. Western Digital Q2 forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Free cash flow reached approximately $1.38 billion, while Western Digital raised its quarterly dividend 16.7% to $0.175 per share. JPMorgan also raised its price target to $650 and maintained an overweight rating. JPMorgan analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish overall, but several firms lowered their price targets after earnings, including TD Cowen to $430, Rosenblatt to $650 and Cantor Fitzgerald to $625. These firms retained buy or overweight ratings, suggesting concern about valuation and execution rather than the immediate earnings outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are weighing rising capital expenditures, possible increases in industry supply and the eventual slowdown of HDD price growth. Questions about HAMR technology transitions and the sustainability of AI-driven demand are limiting the market’s response to the earnings beat. Western Digital capex and supply concerns
• Negative Sentiment: An insider sold 807 shares worth $306,660 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The sale was small relative to the insider’s remaining holdings, but it added to short-term sentiment pressure. SEC insider filing

Western Digital Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $435.48 and a 200 day moving average of $480.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.20, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 2.11.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The data storage provider reported $4.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.11 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $4.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.14 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 48.15% and a net margin of 72.95%. The business’s revenue was up 55.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Western Digital Corporation will post 19.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Digital Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a $0.1750 dividend. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 4th. This is a boost from Western Digital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Western Digital’s payout ratio is currently 2.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Digital

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WDC. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Western Digital during the second quarter worth $1,602,927,000. Anther Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Western Digital in the second quarter valued at $901,601,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Western Digital in the second quarter valued at $885,565,000. Value Aligned Research Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital in the first quarter valued at $350,403,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Western Digital by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,146,133 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $310,018,000 after acquiring an additional 153,600 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) is a data storage technology company that develops and manufactures hard disk drives (HDDs) and related storage solutions. Its products are used in data centers, cloud infrastructure, enterprise systems, personal computers, gaming platforms and external storage devices.

The company offers HDD-based products for business and consumer applications, including high-capacity drives designed for hyperscale and cloud data centers, enterprise storage environments, network-attached storage systems and personal computing.